1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a lightweight, hand held reel for receiving and storing a trotline in an untangled disposition. The reel includes a substantially cylindrical, elongated shaft having a first end portion for receiving the major or main line of the trotline and a second end portion remote from the first end portion for receiving hooks secured to leaders extending outwardly from the main line of the trotline. The reel presents an open area between the wound main line and the open end of the shaft receiving the hooks for enabling rapid winding and unwinding of the trotline regardless of the possibility that the spacing between adjacent leaders may vary along the major line of the trotline.
2. Background of the Invention
Trotlines have been long used for both commercial and recreational fishing, and in general comprise a elongated, flexible main or major line with a plurality of smaller lines or leader lines connected to the major line at spaced locations along the latter. Each of the leader lines remote from the major line carries a hook for receiving bait. Opposite ends of the major line may be connected to anchors or shoreline objects to extend to the trotline across a body of water, so that the leader lines and the hooks secured thereto are simultaneously suspended in a multiplicity of positions in the water to therefore increase the likelihood of successfully catching a number of fish.
In certain of the known trotlines, each leader is separate from the major line and is coupled thereto by a swivel connector. Other types of known trotlines are formed from a single length of fishing line which is knotted at appropriate intervals to present a number of double-stranded leader lines. In all cases, however, each leader functions to enable the hook to be located at a distance spaced from the main or major line to provide slack between the various hooks and the main line and to enable each hook to fall toward a suitable location in accordance with the bottom contour of the stream, lake, or body or water receiving the trotline.
One prior art device that has been brought to our attention is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,843 to Martyniuk, dated June 12, 1984. U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,843 discloses a trotline reel having an elongated, cylindrical shaft with a line receiving spool thereon and a number of elastic bands coupled to an end of the shaft remote from the spool. Each elastic band is adapted to receive a hook connected to a leader of a trotline, and the leader is then inserted in a corresponding slot of a wall of the spool and the entire spool and shaft are simultaneously turned until the next adjacent leader and hook are encountered.
Unfortunately, the reel that is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,843 is somewhat difficult to use during winding of the line on the reel because one hand of the fisherman must be used to guide the line onto the spool while the other hand is needed for both supporting the reel assembly and rotating the same. Moreover, each hook is to be received by one of the elastic bands and the corresponding leader is then to be inserted in an adjacent slot in the spool which placement is not always feasible because of the possibility of inconsistent spacing of the leaders along the length of the major or main line; in addition, tangling of the line may result if more than one hook and leader are received in corresponding bands and slots. In addition, the bands and slots generally prohibit quick, easy winding and unwinding in the trotline.
It would be a desirable advance in the art to provide a trotline reel that is easy to use in comparison to the known, somewhat awkward devices of the prior art and yet is adapted to receive a line and retain the same in an untangled disposition regardless of the exact location of the leaders along the main line.